1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an endoscope cleaning tube adapted to deliver a fluid such as a cleaning liquid or disinfecting solution into a conduit of an endoscope by connecting to a pipe sleeve communicated with the conduit in the endoscope.
2. Description of the Related Art
After each use, an endoscope needs to undergo reprocessing such as a cleaning process, disinfecting process, sterilization process, or a combination of these processes.
Such a reprocessing process is often performed using an apparatus adapted to automatically perform reprocessing. The endoscope is set in a cleaning tank in a reprocessing apparatus in a predetermined manner, communicates a pipe sleeve communicated with each conduit such as an air/water feeding conduit, a suction conduit, or a treatment instrument insertion conduit provided in the endoscope with a corresponding fluid supply port provided in the reprocessing apparatus via a cleaning tube, and thereby supplied a fluid to each conduit provided in the endoscope and performs reprocessing.
Also, a technique is known which, in fitting a housing portion provided at one end of the cleaning tube into the pipe sleeve communicated with each conduit and supplying the fluid into the conduit, provides a gap between the cleaning tube and pipe sleeve, allows the fluid to leak through the gap, and thereby cleans a surface of the pipe sleeve simultaneously. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2009-195400 discloses a technique which includes a housing portion (casing body) placed at one end of a cleaning tube and configured to be connectable to a pipe sleeve; and a movable portion (valve disk) placed in the housing portion and configured to move toward the pipe sleeve under pumping pressure, wherein when a liquid such as a cleaning liquid or a disinfecting solution is supplied into the housing portion from a side of a reprocessing apparatus, the movable portion moves in a direction of the pipe sleeve under liquid pressure, forms a predetermined gap in an opposing surface between the pipe sleeve and the movable portion by being kept in balance with a compression spring and thereby being kept from coming into close contact with a surface of the pipe sleeve, allows a fluid to leak through the gap, and thereby allows the surface of the pipe sleeve to be cleaned or disinfected as well.
Now, in cleaning and disinfecting the various conduits provided in the endoscope, if foreign matter remains in any of the conduits, narrowing inner part of the conduit, it becomes impossible to supply a sufficient amount of fluid into the conduit, and cleaning and disinfection of the endoscope will be hindered. Therefore, according to Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2009-195400 described above, a flow sensor adapted to measure a flow rate of the fluid supplied to each conduit is provided in the reprocessing apparatus to monitor flow condition of the fluid and thereby detect any clogging of the conduit.
There is demand for an endoscope cleaning tube which usually allows circumference of a pipe sleeve to be cleaned and disinfected by forming a gap between the pipe sleeve and movable portion, and keeps the movable portion pressed against the pipe sleeve in case of clogging of the conduit, allowing the clogging of the conduit to be detected accurately.